Are Leaders Really Backing Resilience?

2025 CEO Resilience Report

What CEOs believe, what’s actually happening inside their teams, and
where businesses are most at risk

What Leaders Say and What They Do Aren’t Always Aligned

At Ignite Purpose we Help Organisations Build Resilience into how People Work, Lead and Perform

We work with leadership teams to turn good intentions into steady, practical habits. That includes culture strategies that stick, performance systems that scale, and ways of working that hold up under pressure.

This report is part of that work. We asked CEOs and business leaders across Australia how they’re really handling resilience. Where are they investing? What’s being overlooked? And what’s putting performance at risk?

If you’re leading through growth, change or pressure, this report will help you identify the cracks early and act.

87% say resilient culture drives business growth

While most leaders believe in the value of resilience, few have the systems in place to support it long term.

Burnout is the #1 barrier to resilience

Workload pressure is still the biggest threat to performance, ahead of poor communication or lack of purpose.

Only 24% invest enough in leadership resilience

Leaders are expected to carry culture and pressure, but often lack the support to stay steady.

57% don’t have a way to measure resilience

For most businesses it’s still an abstract idea with no markers for progress.

Only 8.1% review culture quarterly

Few organisations check in regularly to see if the culture still fits or functions under strain.

Only 24.3% believe their culture supports resilience

Most leaders doubt their culture holds up under pressure; a big risk when stability counts.

The report for decision-makers shaping culture and performance

List of Roles:

CEOs
Chief People Officers
Heads of Culture and Transformation
COOs and business unit leaders
Strategy and performance leads
HR professionals driving change

Want a Full Picture?

Download the 2025 CEO Resilience Report and see what’s driving, and blocking, meaningful change in Australian leadership.

What’s Inside the Report?

List of Topics:

What CEOs are getting right (and wrong) about resilience
How culture is being built, tracked or left behind
The true cost of burnout in leadership and mid-level roles
Where businesses are underinvesting in leadership development
Where businesses are underinvesting in leadership development
Why strategy is stalling without active leadership support
Practical opportunities to move from belief to action